Valve device



Jan. 1,1946. w w PAGET 2,392,173

VALVE DEVICE Filed Jan. 16,1945

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Patented Jan. 1, 1946 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

Win W. "Paget, Michigan City, 11111., assignorto Sullivan-Machinery Company, a corporation-o1 Massachusetts Application January 1-6, 194aser1a1-No. 472-;567

. roiaim. (01. 137-53) My invention relates to valve "devices, and more-particularly to supporting means i or a valve member. "It'iscommon'practlce to employ valve mechanisms having yiel'dable means, such as a "diaphragm or bellows, "which responds to fluid pressures for "adjustingtheposition of a valve member. The valve member is usuallyattached in'some manner to the yield'able means, and is adapted to be moved to a'valve openingp'o'sition when the yieldable "means responds to a predetermined maximum pressure. As the pressure decreases, the valve member is i moved again "by the yieldable means toward a closed 'position, It is evident that "the valve "member will notalways be "support'ed'when in open position, in alinement with its seat. This may be dueto a distortion of the yildable means by unbalanced weights or by an uneven yielding of the yieldable means to fluid pressures. 'If'the valve member is moved toward its seat whenit'js'out of 'alinem'ent with "the latter, it will first engage only one-side of the valve seat. To bring the valve'member into'fiull engagement with its seat, it will be necessary tosubject the valve member to a-seating pressure sufficient to 'cauSe it to aline itself "with the seat, If the valve member is "fixed rigidly to the yieldable means, the seating pressure willhaveto'be' great enough to cause the 'yieldable means to adjust itself an amount necessary to "permit the alining of the valve member with'the seat. Since this pressure ma be substantial at times, .a repeated opening-and closing of the valve member will soon cause -the' valve member and its seat to be worn out of shape. It is therefore desirable that the valve member be loosely supported by the yieldable meansso that it 'mayaline itself with its seatwhen it is subjected to only slight seating pressures.

According to a preferred embodiment of my invention suitable supporting means for such a valve member may be provided comprising a member whichmay'be rigidly fixed to the yieldable means and having :a recess within which one end of a valve: member'ifits loosely. Desirably :supported by the rigidm'ember, there will be a spring-element engaging the valve member for holdingthe latter against the bottom of the recess. The inner end of the valve member may be provided with a curved surface which abuts a. plane surface at the bottom of the recess so as to provide a rolling contact whereby a tilting of the valve member relative to the rigid member may be easily efiected. Other arrangements,

such as a plane end on the valve member and a con'vexbot'tomior the recess'may be usedior a like purpose. The spring element fdesirably engages the valve member "in such'away'as to reduce "to a minimum the resistance *ofl'ered by thespring element to "the tilting of the"valve member while yet exerting On the latter a pressure in a direction to maintain the latter'tperpendicular .170 the 'plane' of the valve seating line. 7

An object of this "inventionis' to'provi'de animproved valve device. Anotherobject is'toprovide improved means for 'yieldably supporting a valve member. "Still another object is to pro-'- vide improved means "for supporting a "valve member so that it may "be'easily tilted about "its own axis. Still another "object is 'to provide an improved'valve member having a'curved surface which is yieldably held against aplanesurface on "a supporting member-so as topermit'an easy tilting of the valve member-about its "own axis. Another object 'is' to provide improved means for yieldably' holding a valve member against an abutment insuch a manner as+to offer but slightresistance to "an angular adjustment of the valve'member. Other objects of the invention "will appear in the course of the following description. There is showninthe'drawing one illustrative embodiment which "my invention may assume 'in'practic'e. Inthis drawing: Fig. 1 is a view of avalve mechan-ism'having my invention incorporated therein, partswo'f the valve mechanism being shown in section. V

Fig. "2 is 'an enlarged view showing the v-alve memberand its supporting -means, parts "being shown in section to facilitate illustration.

Fig. '3 is across sectional view takenon the port-ions 5 -and-6--connected together, as-bybolt's 1.

Clamped between the flange portions 5 and 6 is a rigid plate 8 having a central opening 9. Arranged at opposite sides of the clamped portion of the plate 8 are sealing rings II and I2. Fixed in any suitable manner to one side of the plate 8 surrounding the opening 9 is a flexhers I! and l8. 7 with a recessed portion 20 which projects with some cIearanceLthrOugh the bellows and the opening-"3;"a's shown in Fig. "1.

bottom of the recess'32. are formed in thefmanner described to provide 1 ible member l4, shown herein as a bellows. Attached to the outer end of the bellows, as by welding, is a member which cooperates with the bellows l4 and the plate 8 to divide the space within'the casing elements 2 and 3 into cham- The member I5 is provided Opening into the chamber i8 is a fluid supply passage 2! and a fluid discharge passage 22, the latter passage having its axis arranged in alinement with the axis of the bellows l4 and theropening 9.' At

the inner end of the recessed portion is my improved supporting means, generally designated 24, for a valve member which is adapted to cooperate with a valve-seat -providing member 26 for controlling the flow of fluid to the discharge passage.

justable screw 29 for urging the valvemember 25toward its seat.

The valve supporting means 24, as shown, comprises an enlarged head 3| formed on the end 'of the portion'20 of the member l5, and'in the head 1 3| a recess 32 within which the valve member 25' extends with substantial clearance around its sides; Theend of the valve member extending into the recess 32 has a curved surface 33,

shown hereinras forming a portion of a sphere,

and this" surface abutsaplane surface 34 at the A spring 2!! acts between the l bottom of the recessed Portion 2D and an ad- The surfaces 33 and 34 I between them a point contact which lies very v nearly in the axis of the valve member even when i the latter is tilted in therecess. It will be understood, of course, that the surfaces 33 and 34 may be ofothersh'apes and still provide the desired contact, Surrounding the enlarged head 3| is a 1 spring element 36 fitting within a groove 31, and one end of this spring element is'bent inwardly so that it extends througha groove 38 and an opening 39. in the'enlarged head 3| into the recess 32. 'Ifheinner end of the bentportion projects into, an opening 40 formed transversely throughthe valve member 25. The opening 40 is made of such size that the end of the spring element 3B may project into it at an angle, as

shown in F ig. 2, and the length of. the end or below a predetermined -value, the spring 28 causes, the bellows 14 to be compressed and to seat the valve member. 'As the pressure in chamber l8 builds up again, the bellows is expanded against the force of the spring 28 and the valve member is unseated to permit fluid. to flow to the discharge passage. evenly, or if the weight of the parts connected to 'theunsupported end of "the bellows-causes it its seat, it will first'contact one edge of'the open ing 43 and, due to the inclined surface on its seating portion, the valve member will be forced toward a centeredposition as itis moved further toward its seat. Since the valve member is supported to adjust itself angularly when only slight deflecting forces are applied to it, a centering of the valve member will take place'without an ap x jected to appreciable seating pressures. I It will Y be seen that by reason of such an arrangement,

a closer control of fluid flow to the discharge pas-p sage isobtainecL'andthe parts of the valve mechanism are subjected to less wear. I

. While there is in this application specifically described one form which the invention may as sume in practice, it will be understood that this form of the same is shown for purposes of illustration and that the invention may be modified and embodied in various other forms without departing from its spirit or the scope of the appended claim. V

What I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent is: I

In combination, an elongated valve member having a flow controlling portion at least adja cent one end thereof, having between its ends an opening extending transversely thereof and having at its other end an end surface adapted for engagement with an abutment surface, a support member having a radially grooved and circumferenti-ally grooved. annular flange and also I providing an abutment surface, one of said sursurface being so spacially related that said valve a member may extendthrough said annular flange the valve member and the bottom .of the recess and the spring element are such that there is no tendency of the spring to cause the valve member to tilt withinthe recess or yet to offer any substantial resistance to the tilting of the valve imemberby some othermeans. The seatgagethe latter around the edge of the opening with its end surface in engagement with said abutment surface and with a clearance between said annular flange and said valve member suming end 42 of the valve member is shown herein as being conical in shape, and this end projects into, an opening 43 in the seat member 26 to enfor cutting off the flow of fluid to the discharge passage. 1 .l

cient to permit tilting of the latter, and a spring having a circumferential portion fitting within said circumferential groove and also having a radially extending portion received in said radial groove and inclined to a plane to which. the axis of said valve member is perpendicular, said radially extending spring portion projecting into said opening in said valve member and acting on the latter at a' point adjacent its axis for pressing said end surface against said abutment surface.

WIN W. PAGET.

If the bellows expands un- 

